China Confirms Closure of Nathu La Pass Over Trouble at Border

Both sides have been indulged in a stand-off over the construction of a road.

A signboard is seen from the Indian side of the Indo-China border at Bumla, Arunachal Pradesh. Image used for representational purposes.

(Photo: Reuters)

The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) issued a statement, early on 27 June, confirming the closure of the Nathu La Pass. The move is in response to Indian reports accusing the Chinese Army of entering India in the Sikkim sector and jostling with Indian army personnel guarding the Sino-India frontier, destroying two bunkers.

The PLA also issued a statement late on 26 June, accusing India of “provoking trouble” by repeatedly trying to stop the construction of a road along the border. It further urged India to withdraw its troops immediately from the border,People’s Daily reported.

In a statement, accessed by India Today, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said:

Recently, the Indian border guards in the Sino-Indian border Sikkim section crossed the border into the territory of China, obstructed the Chinese border troops in the Donglong area from conducting normal activities. China has taken corresponding measures. At the same time, in view of the above events, for security reasons, the Chinese side had to suspend the arrangement of the Indian official pilgrimage group through the Sino-Indian border at Nathu La pass, Sikkim, into the pilgrimage, and through diplomatic channels informed the Indian side

The Chinese Foreign Ministry claimed that the border at Sikkim "had been delineated by the 1890 Sino-British Treaty on Tibetan Customs". Both sides have been engaged in a stand-off over the construction of a road.

The face-off at the Doka La general area in Sikkim has been going on for the last ten days. Chinese troops have also stopped pilgrims on the Kailash Mansovar yatra, official sources said.

Indian troops had to struggle to stop Chinese personnel from advancing further into Indian territory. They formed a human wall along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) to stop the PLA personnel, some of whom also videographed and click pictures of the incident.

Bunkers were destroyed in Lalten area of the Doka La area.

A flag meeting was also held between senior army officers of both the sides on 20 June.

This is not the first time that such a transgression has been witnessed at Doka La, at the Sikkim-Bhutan-Tibet tri-junction. In November 2008, Chinese forces destroyed some makeshift Indian army bunkers in the area.

(with inputs from PTI)

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